Cover Story
As economic growth languishes and worries about the specter of deflation mount, much-needed infrastructure development and new sources of project financing could provide a panacea to global growth.

It is essential for companies to work with banking partners they know they can trust. Global Finance’s annual ranking of World’s Safest Banks have been the recognized and trusted standard of financial counterparty safety for more than 20 years.

This year, we updated the name of the awards to reflect the extent to which digitization is transforming our lives in general and banking in particular. By renaming this as the Digital Bank Awards, we are making the competition more inclusive of current technology and more future-focused in anticipation of developments still to come.

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TREASURY & CASH MANAGEMENT | PAYMENTS: POST-SEPA
The SEPA migration deadline may have passed, but most companies have yet to gain the full benefits offered by the Single Euro Payments Area initiative. Now would be a good time for treasurers to ask how they can get more out of their SEPA investments.

UNITED STATES
In its 2013 report to Congress, the Export-Import Bank of the United States says that its “overriding mission is to create and sustain American jobs by supporting US exports.” But that very mission is under threat, with House Financial Services Committee chairman Jeb Hensarling, among others, seeking to abolish the bank.

THE BRICS
Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa now have something more in common than rapidly developing economies that have recently stalled. In July they gave life to the New Development Bank (NDB), the first multilateral institution controlled by developing countries.

GCC REGIONAL SUPERSECTION 2014 | INNOVATION
Attempts to drive innovation in the Gulf are still at an early stage. But as countries increase R&D spending, the results could have a huge impact on non-oil growth.

SIBOS SUPERSECTION 2014 | THE INNOVATORSGlobal Finance presents its second annual look at some of the key innovations over the past year within the transaction services space. We make use of the OECD’s Oslo Manual of Innovation, along with submissions, key research and the input of experts, to evaluate those banks and service providers that stand out in terms of innovation over the past year.

SIBOS SUPERSECTION 2014 | COLLATERAL MANAGEMENT
Treasurers are warily eyeing the impact of new regulations on the amount of collateral they must hold against hedged positions—and these new regs will affect their ability to manage and forecast cash.

DEAR READER
Geopolitical instability seems to be everywhere these days, whether we look to North Africa and the Middle East or Eastern Europe, to Southern Asia or Southeast Asia, and it weighs on financial markets and policymakers worldwide.

COUNTRY REPORT | PORTUGAL
With strong underpinnings for reform now in place, Portugal is seeing signs of economic improvement. But now that it has increased exports, will greater vulnerability to global trade winds haunt growth?

GCC REGIONAL SUPERSECTION 2014 | BANKING SECTOR
Banks in the GCC are leveraging the latest technologies to keep pace with a customer base whose members are increasingly demanding, wealthy and tech-savvy.

SIBOS SUPERSECTION 2014 | INTRODUCTION
The Sibos financial services conference—sponsored each year by the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT)—will be held in Boston this year in September and, according to organizers, is likely to have a record turnout of attendees and media.

SIBOS SUPERSECTION 2014 | THE INNOVATORS
Treasury solutions still don’t provide much business intelligence as they lack good integration with ERP systems. But banks and vendors are starting to close the gap.

Ebenezer Essoka, a native of Cameroon, is vice chair for Africa at Standard Chartered. He sat down with Global Finance to discuss African trade and the need for African policymakers to ensure that foreign investment deals are in the best interest of all stakeholders.

UNITED STATES
After steering American International Group (AIG) during the financial crisis and putting it back on a sounder footing, president and chief executive officer Robert Benmosche is handing the baton over to Peter Hancock.